Stelaah

Stelaah vs ActiveCollab

ActiveCollab is a focused workspace for service teams that want projects, tasks, time, budgets, and invoices close together. Stelaah covers that client-work loop, then adds portals, Aria, creative tools, forms, sites, galleries, automations, and a broader connected workspace.

Choose ActiveCollab if

you want a mature, focused system for projects, task work, time tracking, budgets, expenses, and invoices.

Choose Stelaah if

you want client work plus portals, Aria, websites, forms, galleries, automations, and the wider business workspace around it.

What each one does for client work.

Capability Stelaah ActiveCollab
Project and task management ✓ Full workspace ✓ Focused and mature
Task views and dependencies ✓ Lists, boards, calendar, timelines ✓ List, Kanban, and Gantt
Time tracking ✓ To invoice and reports ✓ Strong native tracking
Budgets and profitability ✓ Budgets, margin, reports ✓ Strong project profitability
Invoices and payments ✓ Built in ✓ Built in
Client CRM ✓ Relationship graph and health ✓ Client address book
Client portals ✓ Branded, scoped portals – Client project access
Forms, requests, and intake ✓ Forms and routed requests – Project templates and tasks
Creative delivery tools ✓ Whiteboards, galleries, sites, files – Files, notes, discussions
AI assistant ✓ Aria acts across records – MCP and product updates
Public GitHub – Hosted product codebase – SDKs and packages, not full app source

Checks mark a built in strength. We tried to be fair to both. ActiveCollab earns its checks where it leads.

Where ActiveCollab is genuinely strong.

Focused service workflow

Projects, time, expenses, budgets, and invoices stay close together.

Time tracking depth

Timesheets, stopwatch tracking, estimates, and review controls are central.

Budgeting clarity

Project budgets and profitability are a core part of the product story.

API and SDK presence

Public API docs and PHP SDKs make integration paths visible.

Where Stelaah fits better.

Broader workspace

Client work connects to documents, sites, galleries, forms, files, and marketing.

Aria across the work

AI is positioned as an operator inside records, not only a side helper.

Portals beyond access

Client, vendor, and request portals are first-class surfaces.

Creative and operational depth

Whiteboards, website building, galleries, inventory, tax, and automations live beside the core work.

What you will pay.

Stelaah

Free to start. Each paid plan is priced per workspace and includes a set number of full members, with extra members available on the Team and Business plans. Aria is included. See the pricing page for the current plans.

See plans →
ActiveCollab

Published plans include a flat-rate Plus tier for small teams, then Pro and Pro+ per-user plans for reporting, expenses, workload, invoicing, payments, and QuickBooks. Check activecollab.com.

Pricing changes often, so confirm the current numbers at activecollab.com

Stelaah vs ActiveCollab, answered.

Yes, if you want project, client, billing, portal, and AI work in one broader workspace. ActiveCollab is a strong focused option for project management, time tracking, and billing.

Keep the client-work loop. Add the whole workspace.

Projects, time, invoices, portals, creative delivery, and Aria in one connected place. Try Stelaah free.